


The Kingdom Will Fall (for a song)

by tomatoRenegade



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Gen, Inspired by Hades and Persephone (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Inspired by Hadestown, Inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Time Travel Shenanigans, only a little bit though, sometimes people make bad decisions, the hargreeves children being sad, the smallest hint of plot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-31
Updated: 2020-03-01
Packaged: 2020-10-03 20:08:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20458745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tomatoRenegade/pseuds/tomatoRenegade
Summary: She broke the silence with a cheerful voice and a wave of her fingers.“Excuse me! Number Five? I would like to make a deal with you."---Nobody's righteous, Nobody's proud. Nobody's innocent, now that the chips are down.





	1. When the Chips are Down

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first fanwork ever. After having devoted most of my life to ravenously consuming fanfiction, lets hope I absorbed some skill through osmosis. As the tags state, a few background themes were inspired by the musical Hadestown (hi yes please check it out, the OBC is out and I am THRIVING. btw the second bit of the summary is lyrics from "when the chips are down" ). If I ever find enough time to flesh out the rest of the plot and actually write it out, then the rest of the plot will also take elements from Orpheus and Eurydice. And maybe some Hades and Persephone, who knows. a n y w a y pls enjoy the show.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A pair of strange women visit a lonely man and the top half of a department store mannequin. Vanya plays her violin.

On a dreary day quite some time after the end of the world, a conversation between an old man and the top portion of a department store mannequin was rudely interrupted by a flash of bright white light and the sound of heels on rubble. Two figures stood patient and silent, a few yards away, waiting for the man to notice them. The shorter of the pair turned to observe the barren wasteland with a disconcerted expression. _Who wouldn’t sell their soul to escape this, even if it’s only to enter a different sort of hell._

She wasn’t much of an imposing figure. Her shock of long, bright white hair was swept over her shoulder in a braid. The long strands left out of the braid framed her face in a weak attempt to cover her eyes. The solemnity of her gaze made her seem more frail than anything else. As if the strength of her composure was the only thing holding her upright. She was of an indeterminate age, the faint wrinkles that lined her face indicated stress, rather than the cruel passage of time.

No, that cruelty was seen in her gait, in the set of her shoulders. Her straightened spine, her tired eyes. There was an acquired stillness to her, a survival instinct that demanded she learn to stick to the shadows in order to avoid the flames. She turned back to look at the old man and tried very hard to think of nothing at all.

She stood beside another woman, this one being significantly taller than the first. She held a bulky suitcase with prim, gloved hands. If the first woman was stillness, this one was the inevitability of movement. The unstoppable force of consequence. Her lips were painted a bright, bright red, her eyes danced with mirth that was entirely out of place when compared to the surrounding landscape. She handed the suitcase over to her companion who accepted it without a sound.

Time stops for no man, he can only twist it to redirect the flow. A particular sort of woman can dig her heel into the foramen magnum to get to the spinal cord, stab at the heart of it to rupture a ventricle, cut clean across the neck to sever the jugular. She would chain it to her command through desperate will power.

The second woman, the one with cold amusement in her gaze, took a single step forward. She broke the silence with a cheerful voice and a wave of her fingers.

“Excuse me! Number Five? I would like to make a deal with you.”

\---

In a quiet room, a woman hunches over a manuscript. The writing is sloppy, but it hardly matters. This is only one draft out of many more to go, and it is for her eyes only. She is working on a song. For now, it stays hidden out of sight. One day, it will be for the world to hear. The pen slips from her aching hand, she shifts and another strand of hair falls in front of her face. It’s getting longer, she remarks. It might be time to cut it soon. Or, perhaps, grow it out until it's long enough to be pulled back and out of her face.

\---

Three days have passed since the Hargreeves siblings were hurled back in time, clinging to each other with salvaged remnants of hope. 

Luther trails behind Allison, always two steps behind her and to the left, out of fear that she’ll disappear. She, in turn, is too distracted to notice; plagued by thoughts of the family that she has lost and the family that she has a chance of regaining. 

Diego trains, the resounding echoes in the training hall do nothing to drown out his more insidious thoughts. _ If only he had run a little faster. Payed more attention, wasted less time. If only, if only. _ He never once tries to speak out loud.

Ben and Klaus can be spotted only in the periphery of vision, roaming the halls like misplaced ghosts hidden away in the lonesome corners of the mansion.

Five is… somewhere. He has only been seen during meals, a silent presence that would prefer to be anywhere else but at a table shared with one Reginald Hargreeves. If the elder Hargreeves was a better man, or at the very least a little bit more caring, he would have noticed a change in his children. (“His children” only in the most literal sense. They were children who belonged to him. Quite literally. He bought them, didn’t he? Hence: his children.)

What of the littlest sister? The quiet one. Meek, hides behind her hair and very rarely speaks or even smiles. Vanya can be found in her room, the scent of rosin trapped behind a closed door. She deftly touches her bow to the carefully tuned strings and gently slides into the beginning of [Bach’s violin partita no.2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KaYzgofHjc&t=1375s). The music hums within her, emotions swell like blood out of an open wound. At the end of the allemande, the bow rests just above the strings without a sound. Her shoulders tense slightly in hesitance as she checks the time._ This is a good stopping point, I won’t have time to finish the courante_. She is expecting a visitor and would rather not be interrupted in the middle of a piece. It feels disrespectful, in a sense, to put an end to the music once it has begun.

She turns towards her bed and nearly, but not quite, manages to suppress a shudder of surprise. The woman she had been expecting was there, bringing her palms together in a silent applause. Her smile is bold and sickly sweet. Vanya can’t help but think of a blood stained maw, or perhaps cherry-stained decadence.

“Brava! Brava! Now that that’s over with, why don’t we take this meeting to a more comfortable place.” She waves a gloved hand towards the nondescript suitcase lying beside her on the floor.

“Care to step into my office?” 

Said the spider to the fly. 


	2. There is Nowhere Else I'd Rather Be

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Family bonding time and a choice is made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i guess this is a multi chapter

“Vanya,” said a smooth voice, pitched low and close to her ear, “if you don’t wake up and get ready within the next five minutes, we’re leaving for Griddy’s without you.”

Scarcely audible from under her cocoon of blankets and pillows, Vanya replied with a muffled “They might, but you won’t.”

Poorly restrained chaos filtered in through the door. Even while half asleep, Vanya could hear the rest of the Hargreeves loitering outside her door, bickering among themselves. They, of course, thought they were being subtle. Whispers of conversation sneaked their way into her room.

“We’re not really leaving without her, are we?”

“This whole thing was poorly planned, honestly. A five minute warning isn't much, especially if you want to look presentable.”

“So, you’re telling me that you don’t want to get your hands on some coffee and donuts as soon as inhumanly possible?”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it, you jerk.”

“I’m going to go ahead and assume that we are waiting for Vanya.”

“Hush, all of you.”

Vanya hid a smile against her pillow, cuddling deeper into her nest of blankets.

There was something about the warmth of her bed and the sleepy haziness that still clung to her; She’d never felt this type of quiet contentment before.

It felt nice to be considered, she would enjoy it while she could.

Five was just about done with all the delay. Coffee was calling, and the quicker he could get to it the better. He could, theoretically, disregard the rest of his siblings’ nonsense and just make a spatial jump right into his favorite booth. Theoretically, of course, but where’s the fun in that? Watching his siblings act like the children they rarely got to be was much more entertaining.

With a subtle smile, he very carefully moved his hand towards the corner of Vanya’s pillow. Vanya lay perfectly still. He moved his hand a little closer, hovering above the edge of her blanket. He inhaled slowly and then held his breath-

Vanya felt a shift in the air, she tensed in response-

Five darted for the blanket just as Vanya rolled to the opposite side of the bed, dragging the blanket with her.

“Threats will get you nowhere, Five”

“Do I know you? My sister Vanya was here a second ago, but now all I see is a mound of talking blankets.”

“Excuse you, this is a talking blanket burrito.”

“That's it! I'm done! We’re leaving without you two, we’ll see you at Griddy’s once you stop being ridiculous.”

\---

Vanya wrapped the scarf tighter around her neck, burrowing against the chill. She hadn’t meant to end up walking alone with Five, but she wasn’t all that upset about it.

“Father has been keeping you busy lately,” Vanya says.

“Is that a statement or a question, Vanya?” Five responds.

Vanya looks away, towards the rows of buildings lining the sidewalk. “A bit of both. I was hoping you would elaborate on what you’ve been up to, if you feel like it. The question was implied, Five.”

She lets the awkward silence linger. Talking with her siblings has never been easy, but that might just be because she has never bothered to push it to far. She loves them from afar, extending olive branches when she can, but not much else. It's different with Five. His personality is mostly ego and charm, with a dash of sarcastic humor. He might be one of the least personable of her siblings. She doesn’t actually have them ranked, but if she did, he would be somewhere near the bottom of the list.

Despite his pricklyness, he feels… honest. Genuine. He doesn’t try to mask himself with false cheer of friendliness. He speaks his mind without censure, which oftentimes also means without regard for the feelings of others. This makes his rare bouts of affection more significant. She never doubts his compliments, his amused annoyance, his smiles. She knows he cares, he would never bother with faking affection for someone who isn’t worth his time.

She loves him, but damn. Sometimes it's hard to talk to him.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to share, Five. I was just trying to make conversation."

Five grimaces slightly. “I know, Vanya. It's just difficult to explain and not that interesting.”

“Which roughly translates to ‘difficult to explain to beings of lesser intellect,’ right? I would try to say that in Father’s voice, but I’m sure no one can match his know-it-all drawl. Not even you Five,” she says as she gently elbows his side.

Five lets out an amused huff. “It’s time travel. There, does that satisfy your undying curiosity? I can’t exactly give you a detailed explanation because father dearest banned me from going any further in my research.”

He looked at her carefully as he said this.

Years of experience kept her face in a carefully crafted mask of naive curiosity.

“Sounds complicated. And exciting! But mostly dangerous. I going to assume you’re going to go ahead and try it anyway?”

“I’m not sure. Science fiction authors seem to think that messing with time can have serious consequences. I’ll let it be for now.”

They walked in silence the rest of the way to Griddy’s.

\---

It had been a good night.

Ben was there, alive and whole. Klaus was clear eyed and sober. Allison was radiant, shedding her melancholy for the night. They had all been happy, at least for a while. That was enough for her. Their future was bright, she would make sure of it.

She slung her small bag over her shoulder, gripping her violin case with shaking hands. She held her breath for a second, listening to the silence. There was stillness, except for the occasional rustling of blankets and creaking of bed springs. Even breathing; everyone was asleep except for her.

“Are you ready to go?” said a soft voice from behind her. All she could make out were sad, pale eyes in the darkness. They had a sort of shine to them. Maybe she was holding back tears, maybe it was something else.

Persephone extended her hand.

Vanya reached out to her but hesitated, “You’ll vouch for me, right? You have to make her listen. I don’t want to think of the things I’ll have to do if she doesn’t.“

She hardened her voice. “This is the best choice for everyone involved.”

Persephone smiled faintly. “She’ll listen. I know she will.”

She let those words linger, tinted with a certainty that went past simple belief. This was an immutable fact. The handler, her Hades, would comply if the cords came from Persephone’s mouth. The outcome was predetermined, but Persephone could not help but ask.

“How far are you willing to go for them? For him? You say that you are safeguarding their future, but he’s the one you really want to spare.”

Vanya did not respond, she just held Persephone’s outstretched hand.

After a beat, she gave a whispered answer to the simplest question.

“To the end of time.”

Quite literally.


	3. The More You Hold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five takes a shower and a terrorizes his employers. Vanya has coffee and an uncomfortable conversation. Music is written.

She reaches the end of page, the ink of the final eighth note still drying. The piece itself still has a long way to go, but her eyes are stinging and her vision is blurring at the edges. This is as good a place as any to stop. She can’t actually see the sun from her windowless room, but she’s sure dawn is swiftly approaching. The light from the candle on top left corner of her desk doesn’t do much to illuminate the room. One would hardly be able to see the faint outline of her bed, much less the loosened floorboard underneath it. 

Spine protesting against the strain of being hunched over for so long, she finally gives herself a moment to stand up and stretch. She walks the perimeter of the room, checking behind shadows and within crevices. Eyes trained on the small sliver of space between the door and the floor, she watches for movement. After a few seconds, she confirms that there is no one lurking right outside her door and reaches for the loose floorboard. Her heartbeat racing at an erratic tempo until the sheet music is safely hidden away. She blows out the candle and prays for a dreamless sleep.

\---

“So this is the big reveal?” Five whispers under his breath. All the secrecy, all the grave consideration. Talking a lot of shit, and for what? A plain looking office space with weary salary workers. Protecting the integrity of the timeline? Bullshit. At least he gets benefits. He’s looking forward to a lifetime’s supply of hot showers.

\---

“I’m disappointed, Hades. Where is all the glamour? The grandiosity? For all your talk, I’m not exactly in awe.”

Five found his composure quickly, Persephone observed, returning with his usual fire after what must have been his first shower in decades. 

He missed this, he didn’t have many opportunities to talk shit (excuse me,  _ verbally spar _ ) in the wasteland. Delores didn’t appreciate his cheek or his crude mouth.

Hades didn’t either, but of course she would never let it show. She keeps her gaze locked forward, face set in stone. 

Persephone notices, she always does, but she would never tell. It first emerged as a survival tactic, as most things of that nature do. Reading the room and fleeing at the first sign of danger. Honing in on every eye twitch, every furrowed brow. Clenched muscles, aborted movements. Withdrawing in on herself to become unseen. It’s a useful trick. 

Five is still talking, voice rough with disuse. Making up for lost time? His personality was never really given the chance to grow, left behind as his body aged in desolation. Persephone can’t afford to let melancholy consume her, but she can spare a final thought for clever children and their lost childhoods. She straightened her spine and locked that thought far away in the back of her mind. As if it was never there.

Hades, apart from her initial irritations, was beginning to snipe back at Five with her own barbed words. Persephone would smile, if not for the unhappiness she knew was soon to come. Happiness feels so out of reach in this horrid place.

“Do you just not speak? Did you trade your voice for legs? Hades, do you just keep her around for her good looks or does she actually serve a purpose?” He was goading her into talking, his voice dripping with ill-restrained contempt. Revealing his unease at her quiet demeanor; dominating the conversation but expecting acknowledgment from his rapt audience. Five is very easy to read. 

“I work part time as a doorstop, actually. Usually I’m just a glorified paperweight.”

Hades let a rare smile slip from behind her mask. “Don’t sell yourself short, Persephone, you know your contract. You’re indispensable.”

“Oh really? Well then, tell me all about it.”

“I don’t have to prove myself to you, but if you haven’t figured it out by now then I might as well do you the mercy of explaining. As you can probably tell, my work year is split into two phases. I run calculations and logistics, then carry out the footwork for a rather sensitive temporal event. Call it a personal project, if you will.” 

Hades added, in a lofty tone, “Oh yes, It's all very confidential. Very hush hush.” Bragging on Persephone’s behalf, how sweet.

“You do a great job of speaking without saying anything at all. Color me intrigued.”

\---

Her first meeting with Persephone had been rather uneventful, all things considered.

They had bumped into each other on a sunny afternoon; Vanya braving the outside world for the first time since being shot back in time. The Hargreeves mansion had grown stifling. She noticed the way the others looked at her, as if waiting for her to snap or just collapse completely. They were caught between wary vigilance and their own all consuming regrets. Their individual regrets, their losses. Her siblings began to circle each other with a new understanding, hungry for connection. In her less generous moments, Vanya might even say they were conspiring. Over what, exactly, she was too scared to contemplate. 

So she snuck out, seeking solace in the thrum of people who lived outside her small world within the mansion. Despite the speculation of the others, she remembered everything. It came back to her slowly, but in the end it all came back. The memories, emotions, the raw power that lived within her and around her. The low level buzz of people, individuals living their own lives completely undisturbed by her turmoil. 

So she walked. Head down through the crowd of people, unaware.

Until Vanya bumped into her.

\---

The loss of Five and the recruitment of Vanya mark the final chapter of her journey. Persephone understands this, but it is still a difficult thing to accept. All she’s ever worked for, for as far back as she can remember, has been for the sake of one last crucial moment. The hallway outside her door is silent as always. She doesn't get visitors and the hallway itself doesn't get much traffic. Persephone has had years, decades, to grow accustomed to the quiet. This doesn't mean that she enjoys it. It's in her nature to seek out others, liveliness and noise and reassurance that she is not alone. Inhales, exhales, laughter, hearts beating out of sync. She keeps to herself, looking for others but never interacting. As if she were a spot of stillness in the cacophony she surrounds herself with. It's not ideal, but it's enough. The times of true solace are far behind her. It was another time completely, so far removed it feels like a dream. She takes out her sheet music and continues where she left off. Its nearly complete, she approaches the end.

\---

“So tell me about yourself,” the strange woman asks her in a soft tone, as if unused to speaking. They sit together in a corner booth at Griddy’s. To an outsider, they might look like a mother and daughter enjoying a nice afternoon out. The atmosphere within the booth, however, is anything but idyllic. Vanya tenses, the other woman waits with an air of resigned patience.

“Why do I feel like you know the answer already, regardless of what I choose to tell you.”

“Well, you certainly don’t carry yourself like a thirteen year old girl, so there's one secret out of the way.”

“And here I thought I was doing such a great job, acting hapless and naive in front of a stranger.”

Taking a sip of her coffee, Persephone replied,”We both know you haven’t been naive for a long time.”

“You would be surprised, actually. It took a lot to break me down, I don’t have much experience being jaded.”

“Is that what you tell yourself? So that book was written purely out of good will? After another botched recital, another audition without hope for a call back, did you look back fondly over your childhood and think ‘This is what I was meant for.’ Even then, were you glad? You were spineless, sure, but you were not naive.”

Vanya stiffened, but remained resolute. “So you at least like to think that you know anything about me. There’s no point in telling you what you already know, so let's skip to the part where you tell me what the hell you want with me.”

Persephone doesn’t smile, not anymore, but if she could she would have. It’s like looking into a mirror. Perhaps like looking down into a clear pool, captivated by what you think you see there.

“Patience is a virtue. Have another doughnut, then we’ll talk.” 


	4. Keep Your Eyes Bright

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A contract is finalized, a reluctant alliance is made. Yes, Vanya does intended to leave without a goodbye, its all for dramatic effect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a smol chapter before things start happening

“So, correct me if I’m wrong, you want to hire me to literally cause the end of the world. You want me to do the very thing that my siblings fought so hard to avoid, in exchange for their theoretical safety. Excuse my language but how the fuck does that make sense and why the fuck were you expecting me to agree?”

Hades’s face doesn’t shift from its plastic smile, but Persephone knows the other woman is reaching her limit. It must be a Hargreeves trait, to be able to break right through Hades’ composure. To send her from calm to boiling rage with just a few haphazard words.

Persephone cuts in with an even, “Hades, perhaps I should take it from here? Time is precious, and this contract might take more than you can spare. You know I won’t agree to anything without your final approval, but I can at least have a rough contract drafted for you by tonight.”

Recognizing the out for what it is, Hades nods.

“I trust you. You know how to reach me if you need me, I want that contract in my hands before lights out.” She leaves, the door closes with a gentle click.

“Vanya, if I offered you a way to personally ensure the safety of both the world and your siblings, all while fulfilling Hades contract without suspicion, would you take it? Are you willing to play the long game?”

Not a second passes before Vanya responds with a resolute, “Yes.”

Persephone smothers a smile. “Yes? Without asking about the catch? Solutions don’t come by that easily, the cost might be more than you’re willing to pay.”

“Oh, I’m sure the price will be more than I can imagine. As long as we reach the ending you’re promising me, I don’t think I can really afford to complain about the means. I’m more than ready to try and bargain with Hades, but I don’t think anyone is clever enough to come out the winner in a deal with the devil herself. No offense to the devil. I won’t say that I trust you, but I also don’t see any other miraculous solutions on offer.”

“Vanya, you’ll soon learn that you are much more clever than you think. Give me a few moments to finish writing up this contract. I’ll let you look over it first, then I’ll pass it on to Hades for her approval. We’ll have another round of negotiations if she doesn’t approve. How does next Tuesday sound? I’ll pick you up at about halfway through your afternoon violin practice.”

\---

With the burden of hindsight (going back back back) she understands, in a hazy way, that the sound was always with her. The awareness is a wild thing, curled up tight behind her sternum. It’s only been a few weeks since Five delivered them into this new timeline, and everyday the noise rises. The sound thrashes to the flow of her emotions, and the emotions are so loud now. She is struggling to keep the words inside her head, to keep the emotions and the noise wrapped up tight inside her. They fight so strongly against her grip that she’s afraid that sometime soon they will burst through, taking her with them.

The threat of noise, cacophony pushing through and drowning her. It is emotion and noise and energy and will. Snuff the emotion, drain the energy, break the will, and still the noise lingers. Let it all pour through, and she loses herself in the riot.

The sound was always there for her. When she was skittish and small and straining to pick out the echoes and footsteps in front of her door . She would tense when they got too close, the sound let her know when they passed and it was safe to breath again.

In silence, she took to looking at faces from behind the safety of her hair, shielding her from direct eye contact. Measuring reactions and moods in an abstract way. Without the chance to understand emotion firsthand, she learns from her siblings.

Klaus speaks, his voice rises and drops, his arms follow: a conductor and his symphony. Luther’s face grows slack, caught off guard. Confused? Tension. A leader should never be caught off guard, he knows this. His forehead creases, his eyes narrow. His face shifts, moving to open his mouth.

Vanya leaves before the arguing starts, running from the sound.

So, yes. She could gauge the insincerity in Leonard’s actions. His calculated actions, trying to pry an emotional reaction she wasn’t capable of giving. She played along. Two frauds, going through the motions. She didn’t mean to have it end the way it did, but she can't escape it. Going back doesn't change anything. It did, in fact, end. It ended because of her, and it well end again if she isn't careful.

\---

The others observe Vanya.

They look at her, and she looks at them after they turn away. Always a deliberate second too late. Just enough to catch the last sliver of their faces before they turn their backs to her completely. She watches until they are out of sight and out of reach, taking what she can of them. She loses herself in a brief flurry of emotion, her love for them and her determination, before her mind goes carefully blank again. The afternoon practice is only a few hours away, memories are all she’ll get to take with her.

Memories, and her violin.

Her head and her heart.

**Author's Note:**

> uhm let me know if you liked it? got any ideas? questions? concerns? comments?  
a n y w a y thank you so much for making it to the end, you are incredibly appreciated uwu


End file.
